Apr 18, 2010

The Alan Skidmore Quintet - Once Upon a Time

barabara sounds sez:
Alan Skidmore is not so much underrated as way off the radar for most people. That's too bad because he made some great albums over the years — both as a leader and a sideman — especially this one on Deram Nova from 1970. He's got a great group of freewheeling cohorts with him, especially Kenny Wheeler on flugelhorn. And it's definitely got the feel of that era — the late 60s, the UK jazz scene — when the boundaries between blues and rock and jazz were more fluid.
Dusty calls it... a real treasure, a spiralling, soaring work, comparable with the best Michael Garrick sessions of the late 60s. Over at Barabara Grange we call it a kind of a classic.

more on Alan Skidmore at Wiki...

17 comments:

Anonymous said...

talk is cheap — comments are free...
let's hear from you then!

http://www.mediafire.com/?ylhymmnzxmy

Arkadin said...

Funny, I was just listening to this one, when I saw it posted on your blog. Great stuff indeed!
(Btw check your mail, it's no spam ;))

taro nombei said...

@ Arkadin

Cheers mate!

the jazzstronaut said...

This is my first Alan Skidmore and really pleasantly surprised. I'll be looking out for some of his CDs from now on.

Many thanks.

Anonymous said...

Wonderful. I bought my mono-Deram red point- copy some forty years ago and have it still in my collection. Never heard it in stereo before. I do not even know that the album was given a cd release. Thanks a lot for your appreciated work and this post.

taro nombei said...

@ anon
If that's in reasonable condition, it's probably worth a fair mint — it would be over here, anyway!

boogieman said...

Thanks, I knew Alan Skidmore for his session work on numerous British Blues albums, then as a member of SOS wike Mike Osborne and John Surman. I knew about this album but never got a chance to hear it. If I like it, I guess I'll buy it.
Cheers

taro nombei said...

@ boogieman

I hope you can track down a copy of the reissue CD at a reasonable price — I think it only came out in a Japanese limited edition.
Thanks for dropping by — and cheers indeed!

Simon666 said...

Hi TN, lovely stuff, many thanks :)

taro nombei said...

@ Simon

cheers!

tommythomaso said...

Thanx, Barbara, for the Skidmore treat. Oh Lord, help me stay away from the obvious puns on Alan's last name. I hope I can find a cut or two to share with Moab's slim jazz audience.

Anonymous said...

I, also, know Alan Skidmore as a side-man on many albums from the late 60's-70's. I have never come across this album before; looking forward to hearing it. Many thanks for the posting, TARO.

-Brian

Anonymous said...

thanks for sharing - this sounds intriguing!

taro nombei said...

@ Brian, @ anon
youre very welcome.

Reza said...

Having bit of a clearout which will incl this if anyone out there is interested ?
Deram orig lp

Troy Wheeler said...

Would you mind reposting this one.

Thanks

T

taro nombei said...

@ Troy Wheeler

Thanks for dropping by. Always happy to know people are still looking through the archives here.

I'll try to get this re-upped soon — as soon as I can lay my hands on the album and find the time, that is.

Stay tuned…